View source for Erisians

{{Infobox
 |Box title = Erisians|Row 1 title = Also Known As|Row 1 info =The Traveling Explorers , Eris Mystery Creatures, Gnahurgh, Xk'ynimmi, Irtzwee|Row 2 title = Type of Group|Row 2 info = Species|Row 3 title = Role in Story|Row 3 info = Minor Characters|Row 4 title = Book|Row 4 info = ''The Ionans'' (working title) by E.E. Buchanan}} The '''Erisians, '''or '''Irtzwee '''''(EAR-thwee)''''' '''in their own language, known to humans as the Eris Mystery Creatures/Erisians, and to the [[Titanese Peoples|Titanese]] and [[Ionans|Ionan]] peoples as "The Traveling Explorers" ('''Gnahurgh''' ''[g'NAH-hoo-erg]'' and '''Xk'ynimmi''' ''[chick-EEN-ih-mih],'' respectively, but the meaning is the same in both languages) sentient people who inhabit not just Eris but other dwarf planets and large asteroids in the Kuiper Belt on the edge of the solar system. Their scientific classification is incomplete, for only five earth people have directly seen one, though we have pictures to show their appearance. They have incredible technological knowledge, but do not travel into the inner solar systemp because they lack a propulsion system that could help them escape the gravity of larger solar objects. They experimented briefly with teleportation technology, but so far still have limitations in the power and fuel department. This is how the only contact with Earth and these creatures occurred; a human convoy, using Ionan transport rocket technology to visit Ionan allies on Saturn's moon Titan, happened to be there when a teleporting Erisian accidentally arrived there. She shared knowledge of her species, as she had been authorized to do so, before being  summoned back to her world again. What follows mostly comes from her explanations and documented pictures/videos. Subsequent radio signals between Eris and Titan - some of which are of a nature similar to "face time" technology -  have confirmed this. Titanese and Ionan researchers have passed on these details to Earth, over time . Through these communications, more sentient and non-sentient extraterrestrials the Erisians have contacted in the Kuiper belt have been described to researchers as well, though this information is extremely fragmented and not fully compiled as yet. 

Created by [https://www.deviantart.com/ascotia-bluefleck ScottyBlue].

<span style="color:red;">'''NOTE:'''<br />
'''''This page is not free to edit.'''''</span>

=== Description ===
Erisians are small, six-limbed creatures, but are not arthropods. Adult Erisians, if Irwa is a typical example, seem to average about 30 inches long (not counting the tail), and when upright usually measure about 20 inches tall at the shoulder, and are extremely light in terms of mass. Despite many insectoid features, Erisians have internal skeletons. They also have soft skin and are warmblooded animals. Internally, the bodies are lined with a blubbery substance; externally, they are covered in an extremely dense,  layered, seal-like coat of thick, practically waterproof hair. This 'pelt' will be either gray, slate blue, or brown in color. The individual hairs, however, appear to more closely resemble the setae of a tarantula than Mammalian hair. The eyes (always bright yellow and jewel-like) and faces in general are exceptionally froglike, as are their sticky tongues. They have no teeth, but very bony 'plates' inside their gums. They have very tiny vestigial nostrils, and no external ears, but do have functional hearing organs, much like snakes.  

The six limbs are all long and elbow-jointed above the back, like a spider's legs. Each leg ends in wrists and hand-like appendages resembling gecko's feet; this, combined with some short but very sharp claws, allows them to climb nearly any surface, even polished glass or ice . Erisians typically  walk on the back four legs, and use the front two as "hands", but they can go six-legged or two-legged with equal ease. The legs have powerful muscles, and Erisians, much like a flea, can jump many times their own height with little to no visible effort. On their back, there are two very large 'fins', rather like those of a sailfish; according to Irwa, these can be a variety of bright colors and patterns ranging over most of the visible spectrum. The fins can be expanded and contracted like a fish's dorsal fin,  and also moved to either a horizontal or vertical position when expanded. When expanded fully, they function as parachutes/gliders for the jumping Erisian (Irwa was clocked gliding at 15 MPH for a distance of 400 yards, in a breeze). Erisians also possess many spikes, which can cause nasty puncture wounds, on the tips of these fins. They possess much smaller versions of their back fins on their nose bridge and forehead, rather like a dual mohawk in appearance.  

The tail is long, and curves up over the back like a scorpion's tail. It has a stinger at the end, but this is in the form of another retractable fin spike/barb, and not always visible. Supposedly, the venom of an Erisian's sting is fatal to smaller animals, and causes severe, agonizing pain to anything larger than themselves, but not death unless the victim is allergic to it. Erisians choose whether or not to let their venom into their stingers, and can use it as simply a poking/spiking weapon, which is normally what they do with it.   

Because of this combination of mammalian, fish, insectoid, and amphibious characteristics, it is currently impossible to characterize these creatures according to Earth taxonomy. They are fully sentient, and highly intelligent/technologically advanced; some say they are the closest creatures to aliens as depicted by Hollywood. They do wear clothes, mostly full-body baggy space suits with belts bearing weapons, devices, and tools all strung around, and slits in the back for the fins and tail. Though the fur protects them, they wish to protect the fur itself when they can, as losing it could do them harm. Damaged areas grow back very slowly, sometimes, if badly damaged, not at all. Internally, the biology is not fully understood; however, it is known that Erisian bodies process things very quickly compared to most animals (food/drink digestion, oxygen/air cycle, reproduction, disease, etc all happen rather quickly), and they can adapt to most atmospheric conditions and can breathe underwater to a certain extent.

=== Lifestyle ===
Erisians' original planet they were created to inhabit is not 100% known. They are mentioned in reference to Eris because right now their home base is there, and it may well be that is indeed where they were first. However, there is some confusion on that point, as the oldest records of their history were supposedly badly damaged/destroyed during an asteroid strike, according to Irwa.  

The Erisians discovered and perfected technologies very quickly using minerals available on their homeland, because it seemed unlikely they could survive long without doing so; thus, they are technologically far more advanced than Earth in many ways. Given they are one of less than a dozen known sentient beings in the Kuiper belt, this means that most inhabitable worlds they can reach via their rockets in that area are pretty much up for grabs. They frequently colonize new asteroids, dead or unborn comets, and dwarf planets. They have invented ways of keeping food fresh practically indefinitely, can quickly erect 'stations' which serve as indoor cities to protect them from the elements either on such planets or orbiting them, and have many other devices useful for colonization. As they have no teeth, they eat only things they can crush or swallow whole, and tend to hoard/stockpile these when times are good to make ready for the scarce times. As the Erisian tongue is practically numb and sense of smell practically nonexistent, no food is "unpleasant' to them. Furthermore, their stomach acid is apparently so powerful they can even digest small pebbles, so they are capable of eating pretty much anything they can get a nutrient or protein from, even bacteria-molded soil. They do not often cook food except to soften it for babies/children, saving most fuel and electricity for machines. Anything potentially poisonous that they ingest is almost always destroyed before it can cause them harm. 

Many Erisian colonists live in their spaceships and stations instead of staying for long periods of time out on the surface of their colonized worlds, and often continue to so so afterwards, where they are sheltered from the elements and where there are many modern conveniences. New homes are built by expanding defunct ships into large communal dwellings, or by taking parts of defunct machines to start new communal dwellings. The way Erisians generate most electricity is with wind power, as wind is something there is no shortage of in the objects on the Kupier belt. However, in open space, this isn't available, and cannot be used to power any sort of rockets. On Eris itself, and in any colony that has been around a while, most Erisians live in very large family groups which are small 'villages' in their own right. Erisians have a very ant-like mindset of work, duty, and the majority over the individual; all constructed buildings and cities represent this, everything being close together and multi-story so no one is far apart from everyone else for long. 

=== Culture and Families ===
Most of the below comes from the "About our Culture" papers, pictures, and video recordings Irwa had brought with her to share with any people she met. Erisians are supposedly very gregarious by nature, and do not do well separated from their peers for any length of time. They are nearly always, even on scouting or piloting missions, seen in groups of no fewer than 30. Seeing one alone was a rarity, and Irwa explained was already missing having her husband, children, and others of her species around her within minutes after she arrived (this is also a drawback for them, where teleporting is concerned, as only one Erisian can teleport at a time).  

Also according to Irwa, the Erisians, when not survival-focused, are an exceptionally curious people who love computing, inventing, cataloging findings, and science in general, and are nearly constantly working on one of these tasks.  Reportedly, Erisians have information on a bewildering variety of species, minerals, chemicals, and locations. Their main problem to exploring outside the Kuiper belt - namely, lack of a fuel and propulsion system strong enough to combat larger objects' gravity -  is constantly being researched as well, though as of yet no solution has been found.  However, within their limitations, they will often explore within the Kuiper belt itself, cataloging any findings, and colonizing any worlds that are uninhabited or inhabited only by non-sentient beings. However, the whole society is under strict oaths when it comes to settling planets and scientific experiments, the gist of which are best summed up in a frequently quoted motto; "if it causes harm to discover it, we don't need to discover it." These strictures supposedly came about due to an unfortunate incident some 470 earth years back, when overzealous scientists tried experiments that unintentionally caused damage to the dwarf planet known as Gonggong, and started a brief but very bloody war with the native  [[Gonggans|People of Gonggong]] (which humans have tentatively given the name "Gonggans", as both their species' name and the name of their home planet in Erisian language is non-phonetic by human standards). Ever since this war,  detailed in the article about the Gonggan species, part of the oaths all who become scientists or travelers must take is that, if they discover a world already populated by other sentient beings, they will leave it alone, and/or try to make peace with the occupants before they leave, so they don't start another war.  

There is some ambiguity as to how many Erisians exist, thanks to accurate census taking being nearly impossible with all the colonies, but the number is very high, numbering in the millions. However, mortality rate is very high as well. Because of slow aging processes, lifespan is, in theory, as much as 300-350 earth years, but less than 20% of Erisians die of old age. Most die of the typical issues that beset space colonists. These include things such as disease/illness, unfriendly non-sentient animals, unfriendly climate, malfunctioning machinery, asteroid collisions, and so forth - the few truly elderly Erisians are therefore held in great honor. According to Irwa, Erisians do invent and wield weapons for hunting or for protection; mostly rock-shooters, electrically charged spears/lances, and stone or electrically charged knives. However, because they are already naturally armed with spikes and venom, they do not spend much time on this pursuit, preferring to save resources for colonizing and survival purposes as they are not invaders and do not want to get involved in further wars.   

Despite their intelligence, weapons, spikes, and venomous tails, Erisians are still very vulnerable creatures, comparatively, due to their small and light size, and the mortality rate remains rather high. Therefore, the thing that protects them the most from extinction is the vast quantities of eggs they lay and the rapidity with which they do so. Erisians live in very large family/friend groups, typically led by one dominant elder couple; however, they are not eusocial creatures like ants or bees,  and any Erisian couple can mate and have children if they wish and whenever they wish. Having children is a carefully planned decision and taken very seriously, as the Erisian gestational period is extremely short, comparable to that certain types of mayflies on Earth.  After mating, a female Erisian and her husband will immediately need to find a place suitable for her eggs' survival, as she has only about five to ten minutes before she will have to lay them. For this reason, Erisian communal dwellings always contain two or three easy-to-access "nurseries" (Irwa had pictures of these). There are hexagonal structures dug into the floor and also built into the wall, like a honeycomb but with much wider walls/floor space between each hexagon. Each 'hole' serves many purposes - a place for the mother to lay her clutch, an incubator for the eggs, and a comfortable room for the baby to be raised in, including a bed, bathtub, playpen, food and water area, and other necessities. According to Irwa, a female Erisian will lay her clutch of 17-25 eggs, one in each hexagon ideally but sometimes two or three to one hexagon if necessity arises. The eggs and young will be tended in the nursery until they are mature enough to leave. Because of the size of the family/friend groups, there can be as many as 150 Erisian eggs/young being tended to in a nursery at any given time;  though parents take it in shifts to watch everyone's babies, they naturally spend the most time with their own.     

Erisian eggs, according to pictures and descriptions, have a thick, jelly-like shell much like a frogs' eggs, and are elongated and semi-transparent white, resembling oversized grains of rice. They hatch after about ten earth months, and the resulting larvae are about six inches long, naked, and completely helpless. They have no fur/ridges/spikes/fins, nor do they have their four hindmost legs, and their two visible forelimbs are so small as to be practically useless, save for holding onto food or toys when they are a bit older. Their eyes are lidded but the lids are nearly transparent like the rest of their skin, and they lack all ability to make sound for the first several earth months of their life. They mature very slowly - Irwa estimated it takes about 30 Earth years for a larvae to reach full adulthood. For the first eight of these Earth years, they will gradually open their eyes, and gain their skin pigmentation, blubber, fur, and bony mouth plates. However, they can only move in a floppy, seal-like fashion. They are kept indoors, and tended by all adults in the family group as well as their parents. They do not nurse, but are fed mush of vegetable and protein-rich bacterial matter, until their fur and blubber grow in and they are able to fend for themselves food-wise.  At the age of about 12-13 earth years, they will increase greatly in appetite, and after gorging on food, will enter into a 'pupal' stage, where they will go into a deep sleep for nearly five earth weeks. The adults will put a dark cover over the nursery hexagon at this time. The young then undergo a metamorphosis, gaining their fins, spikes, tail barbs, and the rear four limbs. The young Erisian will awaken looking like a miniature version of an adult, though with disproportionately large head and small and awkward-to-use limbs (these will 'even out' in proportion and become more functional as they get older).     

Once awake and able to leave the nursery, Erisian children are allowed to play both inside and outside the nursery and to explore their home. They are strenuously taught and often apprenticed by older Erisians in the ways of survival, as well. Each child is recognized as an individual and lavished with great affection and love despite their great numbers, to prevent any resentment breaking out among family members. However, due to similarities of appearance, children wear their names on collars about their necks much like kittens or puppies until they are large enough to be individually told apart. Many Erisians retain these 'collars'/dogtags throughout their adult life. They are raised with the same oaths and values as their parents, with duty to family, community, and world well-being in general strongly emphasized. Once they reach full adulthood, they typically start to search among their distant cousins, or other family groups, for a spouse. Marriages are strictly monogamous, last for life, and are very loving and affectionate. To ensure no mistakes, courtships are very gentle, tender, chaste, and careful, and can last for ten or more earth years. When a couple decides to marry, the marriage is officiated by the dominant elder couple of the family group.    

=== Politics ===
According to Irwa, each Colony has a council as its governing body, answerable to the Head Council on Eris. The Councils of Colonies, and the Head Council on Eris, are both elected by the people once every 100 earth years or so and have great power as a body; however, no individual in it solely called the leader, or stronger in influence than any other. The Head council on Eris has about 250 members, while the Councils of Colonies vary based on colony size, usually only about 30 individuals. Everything is decided by majority vote, from passing ordinances, new colonizations, scientific experiments, wars, peaces, and truces. Decisions, most of the time, occur with little argument among the group. However, Colony councils are strictly regulated by the Head Council; if they do ever get 'out of line' and start doing things that are harmful to their colony for sake of power, they can be immediately disbanded and a new election called for. The Head Council is answerable to no one unless they do something completely egregiously against Erisian law/code; then the people do have the right, if enough of them band together, to depose them. However, as almost everyone on the Head Council is elected because of their leadership and their good sense, this has only once or twice happened in all of Erisian history.   

The Head Council is also the judge and jury of all criminal trials; trivial matters can be dealt with by the Council of the colony in question, but any ultimate decision of sentencing for a major crime must come from the Head Council, usually via video-call technology. However, Crime of any sort, even minor, is completely and strictly forbidden in Erisian society, and this stricture is rigidly, almost brutally, enforced. There are not enough resources to imprison large numbers of people, so only accused criminals awaiting trial are imprisoned. Trials are exceptionally thorough and fair, supposedly, but a guilty verdict for theft, vandalism, unwarranted assault, trespass, or breaking of any other ordinance is severely punished with things such as physical beatings, very heavy fines, hard labor and/or taking of property. Sometimes the life of the perpetrator is taken if the crime is a severe assault that caused permanent damage to the victim, or a theft and/or property damage that leaves innocents unable to provide for themselves in the harsh climate. Murder very rarely happens, but is an immediate death sentence, unless it is proven beyond a shadow of doubt that the murderer was acting in self-defense or defense of another. Looting, especially after a disaster, is also punishable by severe beatings or death, as is performing any potentially harmful scientific experiments on sentient beings without their full contractual and willing consent. For this reason, though the war in the past made these harsh laws necessary, crime rates are ludicrously low in most Erisian societies, with the most frequent offense being mild blackmail of a "calling in favors" sort if someone is keeping the hidden breaking of some ordinance secret for another party. Though blackmail in itself is punishable by fines and taking of property for restitution, it isn't usually reported.  

Death sentences are always by a firing squad in a blacked-out underground bunker, so no one Erisian has to bear the guilt/onus of being an executioner. Up until the day of execution itself, family/community members of the condemned are allowed to plead on his/her behalf before the Head Council, if the execution is for any other offense than unrepentant murder. If they can prove it is necessary that the guilty party be spared for the family or community's survival, they will be, but with very severe beating or fining of the condemned. Also, all who plead for the criminal's release will be held responsible and administered severe punishment if another capital crime is later committed by the pardoned prisoner. This rule was put in place to prevent bribery and corruption.  

=== Language ===
[[File:Irwa.png|thumb|220x220px|Example of Erisian script]]
Little is known of the Erisian written language save it has only 4 or 5 characters and rather resembles a sort of binary code. Irwa had some of it on her devices, shown in the attached picture -she said these were just labels describing what they were. Erisians have invented translators which allow their speech to be translated into the language of any creature they scan, but their own language is like harsh birdsong, very screechy, fast, high-pitched and loud, though of course with their poor hearing they do not see it as loud as others do. The "ee" syllable and the "w" and "th" consonants are the most repeated sounds. Irwa wasn't able to give a good explanation of their language since everything she said was translated via her little device into English. However, she did explain that voice inflection/pitch affects the words as much as syllabic differences do, much like singing. They sound as if they were constantly yelling/arguing with one another, according to Ionans and Titanese who have had later dealings with them after the meeting with Irwa.
[[Category:Species]]